Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1887-01-07
participate in any profits derived from an Gle.
vator. grain house, wood or coal yard, located
on the line OF his road.

participate in any profits derived from an ele.
yator. grain house, wood or coal yard, located
on the line OF his road.
WHEAT GRADING.
Que OF the most frequent aud serious COM
plants among wheat producers and dealers In
grain Is the difficulty OF procuring anything
like Uniform grades at different times aud
pIacee-too often, indeed, at the same time
and place-On wheat OF the same kind and
quality. The railroad and warehouse COM
missioneys have done much to le 4sen the evil,
but there IL still wide roam for improvement,
II possible, The inspection should be made
by persons not only disipterested 10
the result, but without kno Wedge OF The own
ershfp Of the grain or Of che probable pur-
chaser-or. indeed. of the person or persons
interested 10 commissions On 1t. rnder con:
oitions Of this kind I am satisfied that the turA
prising and ipexpicable differences 10 official
grades of wheat OF the same variety
and quality would rarely occur. Every avenue
to dishonest practices should be closed by law
where possible. With the door to fav0ritism
left open, dissatisfaction will prevail, even in
the absence OF actual frand.
WATERING STOCKS.
LcommeDd to your special consideration the
tbeGegislation proposed by the commissioners
to prevent lhe issuing OF false. fraudulent and
unpaid stock by railroad companies. and to
regulate proceed ines 10 the matter of increas-
ing their capital stock. It appears to me that
the proposed bill is we'll calculated to suppress
the evil of watering stocks BY railroad
corporations, trick by which
fictitious capital is created, and
upon which the people are required to pay divi-
dends. This melbod of diuting and expand
Ing capital, alresdy dangerous to the public
from its very vastress and ito absolute con
troll by few persons.-sometimes practically
by one msn-costs the producing classes of
the country many millions annually. There
can exist no moral claim to dividends on wa
tered stock. and there should exist no legal
right to such dividends. ,....
CHEAP PASSENGER FARES. .-.,ss, .,es.(
i Cheap passenger fares. on our railroads.
compared with freight charges. ere neverthe-
1ess Of public moment. The territorial limits
Of the state are 20 great--the masses Of the
people 20 remote from our large cities and
public fnstitntiops--that travel 10 oftentimes
burdensome to them, and that free intercourse
between the people. 80 much to be desired for
many reasons, is greatly retarded. Still il
must be remembered that the very existence
OF these magnificent distances and the compAr-
lively limited population scattered over them.
render IL impracticable that the passenger
Ystpe here should be rs low as in the thickly
settled communities Of the east, where the Az
ersge number Of passengers per mile Is many
times greater. Commendable progress has
been made during the past year toward .
standard OF cheap passenger fares. but greater
reductions. II practicable. are much to be de-
sired. There is, apprehend, one obstacle in
the way which Is within your power to remove.
allude to the practice, obtaining among rail-
road companies Of Issuing free passes, This
custom. besides being Of questionable policy,
has become burdensome to the companies. II
favors the few at the expense Of the many.
The travelling public who pay
the amount charged them is
free. It is custom which emacks of fAvorit-
and, like many smother. would be '.more
honored in the breach tbsn In the observance"
It may. however, be safely assumed that the
infn+ nee Of free passes on public men il much
less than Is generally supposed II indeed the
cases where It swerves them from duty are not
too rare to meri; consideration. The custom
has become 80 firmly established that men
holding pablic positions are apt to re-,
gard Themselves - entitled TO
free passes by virtue Of the Offices
they hold. On the other hand the railroads
are eubject to retaliation in SO many ways that
1t IS doubtful II the practice can be suppressed
without legislative Interference Unless for-
hidden by Law, passes will be issueii. and with
rare exceptions those to whom they are issned
will accept them. The Influence OF the few
who refuse win be so slight in restraining the
evil that there will be but little encouragement
to individual action. In my Judgment the
free paes system In its present magnitude
amounts to public evil and recommend the
Of 81 liable IEislstioo to destroy it.